Method and system for radio resource management and network slicing

ABSTRACT

A method, a device, and a non-transitory storage medium are described in which an radio resource management and slice control service is provided. The service may calculate and assign priority weights for processing and transmission of packets received via a network slice and quality of service flow. The service may also calculate and assign a service category set of parameters and values for the packets. The service may calculate the priority weights and the service category set of parameters and values based on a network slice identifier and a quality of service flow identifier. The service may priority weights and service category set of parameters and values may be compatible with stand-alone and non-stand-alone configurations. The service may also provide transport priority to the packets and slice-aware migration, as described herein.

BACKGROUND

Development and design of networks present certain challenges from anetwork-side perspective and an end device perspective. For example,Centralized Radio Access Network (C-RAN), Open Radio Access Network(O-RAN), and split RAN architectures have been proposed to satisfy theincreasing complexity, densification, and demands of end deviceapplication services of a future generation network.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary environment in which anexemplary embodiment of a radio resource management and slice controlservice may be implemented;

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating another exemplary environment in whichan exemplary embodiment of the radio resource management and slicecontrol service may be implemented;

FIGS. 3A-3D are diagrams illustrating exemplary processes of anexemplary embodiment of the radio resource management and slice controlservice;

FIGS. 4A-4C are diagrams illustrating another exemplary process of anexemplary embodiment of the radio resource management and slice controlservice;

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating exemplary components of a device thatmay correspond to one or more of the devices illustrated and describedherein;

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary process of anexemplary embodiment of the radio resource management and slice controlservice; and

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram illustrating another exemplary process of anexemplary embodiment of the radio resource management and slice controlservice.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings.The same reference numbers in different drawings may identify the sameor similar elements. Also, the following detailed description does notlimit the invention.

The performance of a network slice may be reliant on multiple networks,such as a RAN, a core network, and perhaps an application service layernetwork, as well as various criteria and factors, such as rendering thenetwork slice, carrier aggregation of a device, radio quality,cell-level congestion, latency associated with the core network,Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) flow control, aggregation point forthe traffic being sourced for the network slice, reaction to dynamism inthe RAN and/or the core network, among other things.

The RAN may or may not be implemented to include various types of splitarchitectures (e.g., functional split, communication plane split,protocol/layer split, etc.). According to such implementations, a RANdevice may include the functionality of a distributed unit (DU). The DUmay operate in lower layers, such as physical, medium access control(MAC), and radio link control (RLC) layers and may provide scheduling,rate adaptation, channel coding, and modulation, for example. Accordingto a split architecture in which the radio signal processing stack maybe decomposed and isolated functions may be implemented, the DU mayinterface with a centralized unit (CU) or a remote unit (RU) via atransport domain, such as an x-haul network (e.g., front-haul, mid-haul,etc.), for example. Additionally, or alternatively, the DU and the CUmay be combined or the RU and the DU may be combined, for example.

The DU or the functional aspects of the DU is/are an important aspect tosupport network slicing in a RAN. While standards for some aspects ofnetwork slicing may be promulgated by various entities (e.g., ThirdGeneration Partnership Project (3GPP), International TelecommunicationUnion (ITU), European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI),etc.), the functional aspects of the DU that support network slicing areundefined. For example, radio resource management and slice controlservices of the DU, which may support a network slice and associatedquality of servicer (QoS) parameters, may not be configurable by anetwork operator or another entity of relevance, but may simply bevendor-specific and black box configured. This can negatively impact theability to adequately control and support the provisioning of a networkslice, as well as satisfy a service level agreement (SLA), a userexperience, and performance metric parameters and values.

According to exemplary embodiments, a radio resource management andslice control service is described. According to an exemplaryembodiment, the radio resource management and slice control service maybe implemented in a RAN device. For example, the RAN device may be a DUdevice. The DU device may be implemented as a standalone or integratedwith one or multiple other RAN network elements, as described herein.For example, the RAN device may be implemented as a next generation NodeB (gNB) or other type of access device, as described herein.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the radio resource management andslice control service may provide a weighted scheduling service. Forexample, the weighted scheduling service may calculate and assign aweighted value that indicates a priority for scheduling of transmissionof a packet associated with a network slice, a QoS flow, and/or a dataradio bearer (DRB). The weighted scheduling service may include multipleweighted values that indicate different scheduling priorities and/orother pre-transmission operations, as described herein.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the radio resource management andslice control service may provide a weighted resource service. Forexample, the weighted resource service may calculate and assign aweighted value that indicates a priority to resources. According tovarious exemplary embodiments, the resources may relate to air interfaceresources (e.g., physical resource blocks (PRBs), a new radio (NR)resource block (RB), etc.) and/or network resources (e.g., processor,memory, storage, communication interface, etc.). The weighted resourceservice may include multiple weighted values that indicate differentresource priorities. Additionally, for example, a weighted value mayindicate a reserved or dedicated resource, while another weighted valuemay indicate a non-reserved or shared resource.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the radio resource management andslice control service may provide an Ultra-Reliable Low-LatencyCommunication (URLLC) feature service. For example, the URLLC featureservice may calculate and assign a set of weighted values that supportURLLC. The URLLC feature service may include multiple feature sets thatsupport varying levels of URLLC.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the weighted scheduling serviceand the weighted resource service may calculate the weighted value basedon a network slice identifier and a Fifth Generation (5G) QoS Identifier(5QI). According to an exemplary embodiment, the URLLC feature servicemay calculate a URLLC feature set based on a network slice identifierand a 5QI.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the radio resource management andslice control service may provide a slice-aware migration service. Forexample, the slice-aware migration service may migrate an end devicefrom a first frequency band to a second frequency band when a networkslice is not supported by the first frequency band but is supported bythe second frequency band, as described herein. According to anotherexample, the slice-aware migration service may migrate an end devicebased on location of the end device and correlated network slice, typeof service, and/or other configurable criterion. According to even otherexamples, the slice-aware migration service may modify otherconfigurations associated with a network connection.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the radio resource management andslice control service may support stand-alone (SA) and non-stand-alone(NSA) architectures. For example, for both SA and NSA architectures, theservice may support a single QoS flow per DRB. In this way, the serviceprovides a compatibility between SA and NSA configurations even though,as per 3GPP, SA mode may support multiple QoS flows per DRB. The servicemay provide backward compatibility during transition from SA to NSA andvice versa as an end device moves in and out of SA and NSA coverage. Thebackward compatibility may assure acceptable mapping of device SLA in SAmode to NSA mode by assigning the same type of resources, ultra-reliablelow-latency communication (URLLC) features. and scheduler priorityweight to the end device when the end device moves into NSA mode from SAmode. The radio resource management and slice control service may map a5QI to a QoS Class Identifier (QCI). For example, in NSA mode, a FourthGeneration (4G) connection with a 4G core network may be included.According to an SA architecture, for example, a 5G RAN may be connectedto a 5G core network.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the radio resource management andslice control service may support a transport priority service. Forexample, in a split architecture, ingress and egress packets of a DU toand from a CU via an F1-U connection may be subject to varying transportpriorities, which may be correlated to varying 5QIs, Packet DataConvergence Protocol (PDCP) markings, QoS flows, and/or other valuesassociated with the radio resource management and slice control service,as described herein. The radio resource management and slice controlservice may support carrier aggregation (CA) (e.g., at the MAC layer)and dual connectivity (DC) (e.g., and the PDCP layer).

In view of the foregoing, the radio resource management and slicecontrol service may provide configurable control of packets and QoSflows associated with network slices and the functionality of a DUdevice. In this way, SLAs, user experiences, performance metricparameters and values, and/or QoS may be satisfied based on provisioningand configurations provided by the radio resource management and slicecontrol service. The radio resource management and slice control servicemay provide compatibility with 5G NSA (SCG on NR leg) and SAconfiguration, as well as other connectivity services, such as DC, CA,and so forth. The radio resource management and slice control servicemay provide a slice-aware service that may minimize the number ofnetwork slices in support of end device demands.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary environment 100 in whichan exemplary embodiment of the radio resource management and slicecontrol service may be implemented. As illustrated, environment 100includes access network 105, an external network 115, and a core network120. Access network 105 includes access devices 107 (also referred toindividually or generally as access device 107). External network 115includes external devices 117 (also referred to individually orgenerally as external device 117). Core network 120 includes coredevices 122 (also referred to individually or generally as core device122). Environment 100 further includes end devices 130 (also referred toindividually or generally as end device 130).

The number, type, and arrangement of networks illustrated in environment100 are exemplary. For example, according to other exemplaryembodiments, environment 100 may include fewer networks, additionalnetworks, and/or different networks. For example, according to otherexemplary embodiments, other networks not illustrated in FIG. 1 may beincluded, such as an X-haul network (e.g., backhaul, mid-haul,fronthaul, etc.), a transport network (e.g., Signaling System No. 7(SS7), etc.), or other type of network that may support a wirelessservice and/or an application service, as described herein.

The number, the type, and the arrangement of network devices, and thenumber of end devices 130 are exemplary. A network device may beimplemented according to one or multiple architectures, such as a clientdevice, a server device, a peer device, a proxy device, a cloud device,and/or a virtualized network device. Additionally, the network devicemay be implemented according to various computing architectures, such ascentralized, distributed, cloud (e.g., elastic, public, private, etc.),edge network, fog network, and/or another type of computingarchitecture, and may be incorporated into various types of networkarchitectures (e.g., software defined network (SDN), virtual network,logical network, network slice, etc.).

Environment 100 includes communication links between the networks,between the network devices, and between end devices 130 and thenetwork/network devices. Environment 100 may be implemented to includewired, optical, and/or wireless communication links. A communicativeconnection via a communication link may be direct or indirect. Forexample, an indirect communicative connection may involve anintermediary device and/or an intermediary network not illustrated inFIG. 1. A direct communicative connection may not involve anintermediary device and/or an intermediary network. The number, type,and arrangement of communication links illustrated in environment 100are exemplary.

Environment 100 may include various planes of communication including,for example, a control plane, a user plane, a service plane, and/or anetwork management plane. Environment 100 may include other types ofplanes of communication.

Access network 105 may include one or multiple networks of one ormultiple types and technologies. For example, access network 105 may beimplemented to include a 5G-access network (5G-AN) or a 5G-RAN, a futuregeneration RAN (e.g., a 6G RAN or subsequent generation RAN). Accessnetwork 105 may include a legacy RAN (e.g., a Third Generation (3G) RAN,a 4G or 4.5 RAN, etc.). Access network 105 may communicate with and/orinclude other types of access networks, such as, for example, a WiFinetwork, a Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX)network, a local area network (LAN), a Citizens Broadband Radio System(CBRS) network, a cloud RAN, an O-RAN network, a virtualized RAN (vRAN),a self-organizing network (SON), a wired network (e.g., optical, cable,etc.), or another type of network that provides access to or can be usedas an on-ramp to access network 105, external network 115, and/or corenetwork 120. According to an exemplary embodiment, access network 105may include the radio resource management and slice control service, asdescribed herein.

Access network 105 may include different and multiple functionalsplitting, such as options 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, or 8 that relate tocombinations of access network 105 and core network 120 including anEvolved Packet Core (EPC) network and/or an NG core (NGC) network, orthe splitting of the various layers (e.g., physical layer, MAC layer,RLC layer, and PDCP layer, etc.), plane splitting (e.g., user plane,control plane, etc.), CU and DU, interface splitting (e.g., F1-U, F1-C,E1, Xn-C, Xn-U, X2-C, Common Public Radio Interface (CPRI), etc.) aswell as other types of network services, such as DC or higher (e.g., asecondary cell group (SCG) split bearer service, a master cell group(MCG) split bearer, an SCG bearer service, NSA, SA, etc.), CA (e.g.,intra-band, inter-band, contiguous, non-contiguous, etc.), edge and corenetwork slicing, coordinated multipoint (CoMP), various duplex schemes(e.g., frequency division duplex (FDD), time division duplex (TDD),half-duplex FDD (H-FDD), etc.), and/or another type of connectivityservice (e.g., NSA NR, SA NR, etc.).

According to some exemplary embodiments, access network 105 may beimplemented to include various architectures of wireless service, suchas, for example, macrocell, microcell, femtocell, picocell, metrocell,NR cell, Long Term Evolution (LTE) cell, non-cell, or another type ofcell architecture. Additionally, according to various exemplaryembodiments, access network 105 may be implemented according to variouswireless technologies (e.g., radio access technologies (RATs), etc.),and various wireless standards, frequencies, bands, and segments ofradio spectrum (e.g., centimeter (cm) wave, millimeter (mm) wave, below6 gigahertz (GHz), above 6 GHz, higher than mm wave, licensed radiospectrum, unlicensed radio spectrum, above mm wave), and/or otherattributes or technologies used for radio communication. Additionally,or alternatively, according to some exemplary embodiments, accessnetwork 105 may be implemented to include various wired and/or opticalarchitectures for wired and/or optical access services.

Depending on the implementation, access network 105 may include one ormultiple types of network devices, such as access devices 107. Forexample, access device 107 may include a gNB, an evolved LTE (eLTE)evolved Node B (eNB), an eNB, a radio network controller (RNC), a remoteradio head (RRH), a baseband unit (BBU), an RU, a CU, a CU control plane(CU CP), a CU user plane (CU UP), a DU, a small cell node (e.g., apicocell device, a femtocell device, a microcell device, a home eNB,etc.), an open network device (e.g., O-RAN Centralized Unit (O-CU),O-RAN Distributed Unit (O-DU), O-RAN next generation Node B (O-gNB),O-RAN evolved Node B (O-eNB)), a 5G ultra-wide band (UWB) node, a futuregeneration wireless access device (e.g., a 6G wireless station, aseventh generation (7G) wireless station, etc.), another type ofwireless node (e.g., a WiFi device, a WiMax device, a hotspot device,etc.) that provides a wireless access service, or another type ofnetwork device that provides a transport service (e.g., routing andforwarding), such as a router, a switch, or another type of layer 3(e.g., network layer of the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model)network device. Additionally, or alternatively, access device 107 mayinclude a wired and/or optical device (e.g., modem, wired access point,optical access point, Ethernet device, etc.) that provides networkaccess. According to some exemplary implementations, access device 107may include a combined functionality of multiple RATs (e.g., 4G and 5Gfunctionality, 5G and 5.5G functionality, etc.) via soft and hardbonding based on demands and needs. According to some exemplaryimplementations, access device 107 may include an integratedfunctionality, such as a CU-CP and a CU-UP, or other integrations ofsplit RAN nodes. Access device 107 may be an indoor device or an outdoordevice.

According to various exemplary embodiments, one or multiple types ofaccess devices 107 may provide the radio resource management and serviceslice control service, as described herein. For example, as previouslydescribed, a (standalone) DU device, an access device 107 that includesan RU and a DU or a DU and a CU, a gNB, an eLTE eNB, or another type ofaccess device 107 that may include the functionality of a DU and/orsupports network slicing may provide the radio resource management andservice slice control service, as described herein.

According to various exemplary implementations, access device 107 mayinclude one or multiple sectors or antennas. The antenna may beimplemented according to various configurations, such as single inputsingle output (SISO), single input multiple output (SIMO), multipleinput single output (MISO), multiple input multiple output (MIMO),massive MIMO, three dimensional (3D) and adaptive beamforming (alsoknown as full-dimensional agile MIMO), 2D beamforming, antenna spacing,tilt (relative to the ground), radiation pattern, directivity,elevation, planar arrays, and so forth. Depending on the implementation,access device 107 may provide a wireless access service at a cell, asector, a sub-sector, carrier, and/or other configurable level.

External network 115 may include one or multiple networks of one ormultiple types and technologies. For example, external network 115 maybe implemented to include a service or an application-layer network, acloud network, a private network, a public network, a MEC network, a fognetwork, the Internet, a service provider network, the World Wide Web(WWW), an Internet Protocol Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) network, a RichCommunication Service (RCS) network, an SDN, a virtual network, apacket-switched network, a data center, or other type of network thatmay provide access to and may host an end device application, service,or asset (also referred to as an “application service”).

Depending on the implementation, external network 115 may includevarious network devices such as external devices 117. For example,external devices 117 may include servers (e.g., web, application, cloud,etc.), mass storage devices, data center devices, network functionvirtualization (NFV) devices, containers, virtual machines, SDN devices,cloud computing devices, platforms, and other types of network devices,platforms, and/or architectures pertaining to various network-relatedfunctions (e.g., security, management, charging, billing,authentication, authorization, policy enforcement, development, etc.).

External devices 117 may host one or multiple types of applicationservices. For example, the application services may pertain to broadbandservices in dense areas (e.g., pervasive video, smart office, operatorcloud services, video/photo sharing, etc.), broadband access everywhere(e.g., 50/100 Mbps, ultra-low-cost network, etc.), higher user mobility(e.g., high speed train, remote computing, moving hot spots, etc.), IoTs(e.g., smart wearables, sensors, mobile video surveillance, smartcities, connected home, etc.), extreme real-time communications (e.g.,tactile Internet, augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), etc.),lifeline communications (e.g., natural disaster, emergency response,etc.), ultra-reliable communications (e.g., automated traffic controland driving, collaborative robots, health-related services (e.g.,monitoring, remote surgery, etc.), drone delivery, public safety, etc.),broadcast-like services, communication services (e.g., email, text(e.g., Short Messaging Service (SMS), Multimedia Messaging Service(MMS), etc.), voice, conferencing, instant messaging), video streaming,and/or other types of wireless and/or wired application services.

Core network 120 may include one or multiple networks of one or multiplenetwork types and technologies. Core network 120 may include acomplementary network of access network 105. For example, core network120 may be implemented to include an NGC network, an Evolved Packet Core(EPC) of an LTE network, an LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) network, and/or anLTE-A Pro network, a future generation core network (e.g., a 6G orbeyond core network, etc.), and/or another type of core network.

Depending on the implementation of core network 120, core network 120may include various types of network devices that are illustrated inFIG. 1 as core devices 122. For example, core devices 122 may include auser plane function (UPF), a Non-3GPP Interworking Function (N3IWF), anaccess and management mobility function (AMF), a session managementfunction (SMF), a unified data management (UDM) device, a unified datarepository (UDR) device, an authentication server function (AUSF), anNSSF, a network repository function (NRF), a policy control function(PCF), a binding support function (BSF), a network data analyticsfunction (NWDAF), a network exposure function (NEF), a lifecyclemanagement (LCM) device, an application function (AF), a mobilitymanagement entity (MME), a packet gateway (PGW), an enhanced packet datagateway (ePDG), a serving gateway (SGW), a home agent (HA), a GeneralPacket Radio Service (GPRS) support node (GGSN), a home subscriberserver (HSS), an authentication, authorization, and accounting (AAA)server, a policy and charging rules function (PCRF), a policy andcharging enforcement function (PCEF), and/or a charging system (CS).According to other exemplary implementations, core devices 122 mayinclude additional, different, and/or fewer network devices than thosedescribed. For example, core devices 122 may include a non-standard or aproprietary network device, and/or another type of network device thatmay be well-known but not particularly mentioned herein. Core devices122 may also include a network device that provides a multi-RATfunctionality (e.g., 4G and 5G, 5G and 5.5G, 5G and 6G, etc.), such asan SMF with PGW control plane functionality (e.g., SMF+PGW−C), a UPFwith PGW user plane functionality (e.g., UPF+PGW−U), a servicecapability exposure function (SCEF) with a NEF (SCEF+NEF), and/or othercombined nodes (e.g., an HSS with a UDM and/or UDR, an MME with an AMF,etc.).

End devices 130 include a device that may have computational and/orcommunication capabilities (e.g., wireless, wired, optical, etc.). Enddevice 130 may be implemented as a mobile device, a portable device, astationary device (e.g., a non-mobile device), a device operated by auser, or a device not operated by a user. For example, end device 130may be implemented as a smartphone, a mobile phone, a personal digitalassistant, a tablet, a netbook, a phablet, a wearable device (e.g., awatch, glasses, etc.), a computer, a gaming device, a music device, anIoT device, a drone, a smart device, or other type of wireless device(e.g., other type of user equipment (UE)). End device 130 may beconfigured to execute various types of software (e.g., applications,programs, etc.). The number and the types of software may vary among enddevices 130.

End device 130 may support one or multiple RATs (e.g., 4G, 5G, and/orfuture generation RAT) and various portions of the radio spectrum (e.g.,multiple frequency bands, multiple carrier frequencies, licensed,unlicensed, mm wave, above mm wave, etc.), various levels and genres ofnetwork slicing, DC service, and/or other types of connectivityservices. Additionally, end device 130 may include one or multiplecommunication interfaces that provide one or multiple (e.g.,simultaneous, interleaved, etc.) connections via the same or differentRATs, frequency bands, carriers, network slices, and/or othercommunication medium (e.g., wired, etc.). The multimode capabilities ofend device 130 may vary among end devices 130.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating another exemplary environment in whichan exemplary embodiment of the radio resource management and slicecontrol service may be implemented. As illustrated, environment 200includes end devices 130 and various access devices 107, such as RU 205,DU 210, and CU-UP 215-1 and CU-UP 215-2 (also referred to as CU-UPs 215or individually or generally as CU-UP 215). Core devices 122 include UPF220-1 and UPF 220-2 (also referred to as UPFs 220 and individually orgenerally as UPF 220), and external devices 117 include servers 225-1,225-2, and 225-3 (also referred to as servers 225 and individually orgenerally as server 225). The number and type of access devices 107,core devices 122, and external devices 117 illustrated in FIG. 2 areexemplary.

As further illustrated, environment 200 includes network slices 230-1and 230-2 (also referred to as network slices 230 and individually orgenerally as network slice 230), DRBs 233-1, 233-2, and 233-3 (alsoreferred to as DRBs 233 and individually or generally as DRB 233), andQoS flows 235-1, 235-2, and 235-3 (also referred to as QoS flows 235 andindividually or generally as QoS flow 235). According to an exemplaryembodiment, the radio resource management and slice control service mayprovide or support one QoS flow 235 per DRB 233. According to anexemplary embodiment, the radio resource management and slice controlservice may provide or support one or multiple QoS flows 235 per networkslice 230. Servers 225 may provide an application service to end device130 via network slice 230, DRB 233, and QoS flow 235.

FIGS. 3A-3D are diagrams illustrating exemplary processes 300 of anexemplary embodiment of the radio resource management and slice controlservice may be implemented. Referring to FIG. 3A, assume end device 130establishes a packet data unit (PDU) session with server 225-1 vianetwork slice 230-1, DRB 233-1, RU 205, DU 210, CU-UP 215-1, and UPF220-1. Although not illustrated, a CU-CP may communicate with DU 210,for example, and provide various types of information, such as DRBidentifier, Single-Network Slice Selection Assistance Information(S-NSSAI), a QoS flow level, a QoS flow level parameter, and/or othertypes of information that may enable DU 210 to establish network slice230, DRB 233, and QoS flow 235.

According to this exemplary scenario, as packets 305 of QoS flow 235-1are transmitted from end device 130 and received by DU 210 in theuplink, DU 210 may calculate weighted values for resources andscheduling 310 for packets 305. According to other exemplary scenarios,packets 305 may originate from server 225-1, for example, received by DU210 in the downlink. According to either scenario, the weighted valuesmay pertain to a priority of resources and a priority for scheduling forthe packets of the QoS flow 235-1. The priority of resources may pertainto air interface resources (e.g., physical resource blocks (PRBs), a newradio (NR) resource block (RB), etc.) and/or network resources of DU 210(e.g., processor, memory, storage, communication interface, etc.). Thepriority for scheduling may pertain to transmission of the packets inthe uplink (e.g., to CU-UP 215-1) or the downlink (e.g., to RU 205). DU210 may calculate the weighted values based on a network sliceidentifier (e.g., of network slice 230-1) and a 5QI (e.g., of QoS flow235-1). As an example, DU 210 may use the following exemplary expressionto calculate each of the weighted values:

f(Slice ID,5QI)=weighted value  (1).

According to another example, DU 210 may use a different set ofarguments to calculate each of the weighted values, such as those in thefollowing exemplary expression:

f(Slice ID,5QI,DRB ID,ARP)=weighted value  (2),

in which a DRB identifier and an Allocation and Retention Priority (ARP)value may be additional arguments to calculate one or both of theweighted values, as described herein. According to various exemplaryembodiments, DU 210 may calculate a weighted value for resources andanother weighted value for priority of scheduling based on the same ordifferent expressions. Additionally, according to various exemplaryembodiments, expressions (1) and (2) may include additional, different,and/or fewer arguments. For example, additional and/or differentarguments of relevance relating to priority associated with schedulingand/or resources may be used.

Referring to FIG. 3B, DU 210 may select resources 315 and calculate aURLLC feature set 320 for the packets. For example, resources may bedivided into various categories, such as common, priority, and dedicatedpools. As an example, common resources may be used by all. Priorityresources may be used by only certain slices, but if unused, thoseresources may be allocated to the common pool. Dedicated resources maybe reserved and used only by specific slices. However, the dedicatedresources may not be allocated into the common pool or the priority poolif unused. According to other exemplary implementations, the numberand/or category of resources may be different. Additionally, oralternatively, the configuration for unused resources of a category maybe different. DU 210 may select resources 315 based on the weightedvalue(s) for resources. According to this example, assume that thepackets qualify for URLLC service. According to other examples, thepackets may not qualify for URRLC service. As an example, DU 210 may usethe following exemplary expression to calculate a URLLC feature set:

f(Slice ID,5QI)=URLLC feature set  (3).

According to another example, DU 210 may use a different set ofarguments to calculate the URLLC feature set, such as those in thefollowing exemplary expression:

f(Slice ID,5QI,DRB ID,ARP)=URLLC feature set  (4).

The URLLC feature set may pertain to reliability and latency performancemetric values in relation to transmission and reception of the packets.According to various exemplary embodiments, expressions (3) and (4) mayinclude additional, different, and/or fewer arguments.

According to some exemplary embodiments, DU 210 may store informationthat correlates weighted values and URLCC feature sets to parameters andvalues that indicate different priority levels and associated resources,scheduling, URLLC features, and/or other pre-transmission operations, asdescribed herein. DU 210 may perform a lookup and compare a calculatedvalue to the information and provision accordingly. According to otherexemplary embodiments, DU 210 may allocate, provision, and/or apply theweighted value or URLCC feature set without such information.

Referring to FIG. 3C, DU 210 may process the packets based on thecalculated scheduling weighted value, the selected resources, and URLLCfeature set 325. For example, DU 210 may use resources (e.g., networkresources, air interface resources, dedicated, etc.), apply a schedulingpriority for buffering and transmission of the packets, and apply theURLLC feature set parameters and values to packets 305.

Referring to FIG. 3D, an F1-UP connection 330 may be implemented betweenDU 210 and CU-UP 215-1. The radio resource management and slice controlservice may provide a transport priority 335 for packets 305 via F1-UPconnection 325 to CU-UP 215-1. For example, DU 210 may mark packets 305with a Differentiated Service Code Point (DSCP) value based on 5QI or5QI and ARP priority levels. In this way, different DRBs may provideflexibility and/or tunability at RLC and PDCP layers. For example, theremay be varying PDCP packet discard timers and/or unacknowledged mode(UM) for voice packets. The transport priority service may also relateto Class of Service (CoS) or P-bit value associated with a servicevirtual local area network (VLAN) Ethernet. According to other exemplaryscenarios, the transport priority service may provide a transportpriority for packets via a front-haul connection 340 between DU 210 andRU 205.

FIGS. 3A-3D illustrate an exemplary embodiment of a process of the radioresource management and slice control service, according to otherexemplary scenarios, the radio resource management and slice controlservice may perform additional operations, fewer operations, and/ordifferent operations than those illustrated and described.

FIGS. 4A-4C are diagrams illustrating another exemplary process of anexemplary embodiment of the radio resource management and slice controlservice. Assume end device 130 is attached and registered to accessnetwork 105 (e.g., RU 205, DU 210, and CU-UP 215-1) and core network 120(e.g., including UPF 220-1). Thereafter, according to an exemplaryscenario a user (not illustrated) of end device 130 may execute anapplication. End device 130 may generate and transmit a PDU sessionrequest 405, which is received by DU 210. For example, PDU sessionrequest 405 may be a request to establish an application service sessionwith application service server (e.g., external device 117). Inresponse, DU 210 may analyze the PDU session request 410 and maydetermine whether SLA criterion of a requested application service issatisfied 415. For example, the SLA criterion may relate to thefrequency band associated with an RRC connection between RU 205 and enddevice 130. Additionally, or alternatively, the SLA criterion may relateto the location of end device 130.

According to an exemplary scenario, assume the requested applicationservice is an URLLC service. According to an exemplary embodiment, DU210 may store information that correlates an SLA criterion or criteriato application services. The information may also correlate networkslice identifiers that identify network slices that support theapplication services. Referring to FIG. 4B, DU 210 may determine thatend device 130 does not satisfy one or multiple SLA criterion 420. Forexample, DU 210 may determine that end device 130 should migrate to adifferent frequency band and/or duplexing scheme (e.g., mmWave versusSub-3 FDD, mmWave versus Sub-6 TDD, etc.), attach to a different RU 205,attach to a different CU-UP 215 (e.g., a CU-UP 215 configured for localbreak out (LBO), private (versus public) communication, time-sensitivenetworking (TSN) communication, etc.), and/or some other modifiednetwork connection configuration (e.g., UE location specific, etc.).According to some exemplary embodiments, DU 210 may store end devicecapability information of end device 130. DU 210 may use the end devicecapability information to identify a modification to the currentconnection configuration that would support the requested applicationservice. For example, DU 210 may determine a frequency band, a RAT, orother feature supported by end device 130 that correlates to a networkslice and/or associated network connection configuration that supportsthe requested application service.

As illustrated, according to this exemplary scenario, assume that DU 210generates and transmits a message 425 to RU 205 and/or end device 130.Message 425 may include information indicating the modification of thecurrent connection. According to some exemplary implementations, message425 may be implemented as a PDU session response that also includesnetwork connection configuration information. According to otherexemplary implementations, message 425 may only include the networkconnection configuration information. Referring to FIG. 4C, in responseto receiving message 425, end device 130 or RU 205 may invoke an RRCreconfiguration procedure 430. For example, according to an exemplaryscenario, end device 130 may migrate to a different frequency band, adifferent RAT, a different RU, and/or so forth that supports a networkslice and requested application service. According to some exemplaryimplementations, end device 130 may have to transmit another PDU sessionrequest after modification of the network connection. According to otherexemplary scenarios, other types of procedures may be invoked by RU 205,DU 210, CU 215, and/or other network devices of access network 105and/or core network 120 that may modify the network connection with enddevice 130.

FIGS. 4A-4C illustrate another exemplary process 400 of the radioresource management and slice control service, according to otherexemplary scenarios, the radio resource management and slice controlservice may perform additional operations, fewer operations, and/ordifferent operations than those illustrated and described.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating exemplary components of a device 500that may be included in one or more of the devices described herein. Forexample, device 500 may correspond to access device 107, external device117, core device 122, end device 130, RU 205, DU 210, CU 215, UPF 220,server 225 and/or other types of network devices, as described herein.As illustrated in FIG. 5, device 500 includes a bus 505, a processor510, a memory/storage 515 that stores software 520, a communicationinterface 525, an input 530, and an output 535. According to otherembodiments, device 500 may include fewer components, additionalcomponents, different components, and/or a different arrangement ofcomponents than those illustrated in FIG. 5 and described herein.

Bus 505 includes a path that permits communication among the componentsof device 500. For example, bus 505 may include a system bus, an addressbus, a data bus, and/or a control bus. Bus 505 may also include busdrivers, bus arbiters, bus interfaces, clocks, and so forth.

Processor 510 includes one or multiple processors, microprocessors, dataprocessors, co-processors, graphics processing units (GPUs), applicationspecific integrated circuits (ASICs), controllers, programmable logicdevices, chipsets, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), applicationspecific instruction-set processors (ASIPs), system-on-chips (SoCs),central processing units (CPUs) (e.g., one or multiple cores),microcontrollers, neural processing unit (NPUs), and/or some other typeof component that interprets and/or executes instructions and/or data.Processor 510 may be implemented as hardware (e.g., a microprocessor,etc.), a combination of hardware and software (e.g., a SoC, an ASIC,etc.), may include one or multiple memories (e.g., cache, etc.), etc.

Processor 510 may control the overall operation, or a portion ofoperation(s) performed by device 500. Processor 510 may perform one ormultiple operations based on an operating system and/or variousapplications or computer programs (e.g., software 520). Processor 510may access instructions from memory/storage 515, from other componentsof device 500, and/or from a source external to device 500 (e.g., anetwork, another device, etc.). Processor 510 may perform an operationand/or a process based on various techniques including, for example,multithreading, parallel processing, pipelining, interleaving, learning,model-based, etc.

Memory/storage 515 includes one or multiple memories and/or one ormultiple other types of storage mediums. For example, memory/storage 515may include one or multiple types of memories, such as, a random accessmemory (RAM), a dynamic random access memory (DRAM), a static randomaccess memory (SRAM), a cache, a read only memory (ROM), a programmableread only memory (PROM), an erasable PROM (EPROM), an electrically EPROM(EEPROM), a single in-line memory module (SIMM), a dual in-line memorymodule (DIMM), a flash memory (e.g., 2D, 3D, NOR, NAND, etc.), a solidstate memory, and/or some other type of memory. Memory/storage 515 mayinclude a hard disk (e.g., a magnetic disk, an optical disk, amagneto-optic disk, a solid state disk, etc.), a Micro-ElectromechanicalSystem (MEMS)-based storage medium, and/or a nanotechnology-basedstorage medium. Memory/storage 515 may include drives for reading fromand writing to the storage medium.

Memory/storage 515 may be external to and/or removable from device 500,such as, for example, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) memory stick, adongle, a hard disk, mass storage, off-line storage, or some other typeof storing medium (e.g., a compact disk (CD), a digital versatile disk(DVD), a Blu-Ray disk (BD), etc.). Memory/storage 515 may store data,software, and/or instructions related to the operation of device 500.

Software 520 includes an application or a program that provides afunction and/or a process. As an example, with reference to DU 210,software 520 may include an application that, when executed by processor510, provides a function and/or a process of the radio resourcemanagement and slice control service, as described herein. According toanother example, software 520 may include an application that, whenexecuted by processor 510, provides a function and/or a process of theradio resource management and slice control service, as describedherein, relative to another type of access device 107, which may includeDU functionality. Software 520 may also include firmware, middleware,microcode, hardware description language (HDL), and/or other form ofinstruction. Software 520 may also be virtualized. Software 520 mayfurther include an operating system (OS) (e.g., Windows, Linux, Android,proprietary, etc.).

Communication interface 525 permits device 500 to communicate with otherdevices, networks, systems, and/or the like. Communication interface 525includes one or multiple wireless interfaces and/or wired interfaces.For example, communication interface 525 may include one or multipletransmitters and receivers, or transceivers. Communication interface 525may operate according to a protocol stack and a communication standard.Communication interface 525 may include an antenna. Communicationinterface 525 may include various processing logic or circuitry (e.g.,multiplexing/de-multiplexing, filtering, amplifying, converting, errorcorrection, application programming interface (API), etc.).Communication interface 525 may be implemented as a point-to-pointinterface, a service-based interface, or a reference interface, forexample.

Input 530 permits an input into device 500. For example, input 530 mayinclude a keyboard, a mouse, a display, a touchscreen, a touchlessscreen, a button, a switch, an input port, a joystick, speechrecognition logic, and/or some other type of visual, auditory, tactile,affective, olfactory, etc., input component. Output 535 permits anoutput from device 500. For example, output 535 may include a speaker, adisplay, a touchscreen, a touchless screen, a light, an output port,and/or some other type of visual, auditory, tactile, etc., outputcomponent.

As previously described, a network device may be implemented accordingto various computing architectures (e.g., in a cloud, etc.) andaccording to various network architectures (e.g., a virtualizedfunction, etc.). Device 500 may be implemented in the same manner. Forexample, device 500 may be instantiated, created, deleted, or some otheroperational state during its life-cycle (e.g., refreshed, paused,suspended, rebooting, or another type of state or status), usingwell-known virtualization technologies (e.g., hypervisor, containerengine, virtual container, virtual machine, etc.) in an applicationservice layer network (e.g., external network 115) and/or another typeof network (e.g., access network 105, core network 120, etc.). Thus,network devices described herein may be implemented as device 500.

Device 500 may perform a process and/or a function, as described herein,in response to processor 510 executing software 520 stored bymemory/storage 515. By way of example, instructions may be read intomemory/storage 515 from another memory/storage 515 (not shown) or readfrom another device (not shown) via communication interface 525. Theinstructions stored by memory/storage 515 cause processor 510 to performa function or a process described herein. Alternatively, for example,according to other implementations, device 500 performs a function or aprocess described herein based on the execution of hardware (processor510, etc.).

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary process 600 of anexemplary embodiment of the radio resource management and slice controlservice. According to an exemplary embodiment, DU 210 or another type ofaccess device 107 that includes DU functionality may perform a step ofprocess 600. According to an exemplary implementation, processor 510executes software 520 to perform the step of process 600, as describedherein. Alternatively, the step may be performed by execution of onlyhardware.

In block 605, access device 107 may receive packets associated with anetwork slice and a QoS flow. For example, access device 107 may receivepackets of a PDU session in the uplink or the downlink.

In block 610, access device 107 may calculate a scheduling priorityweight for the packets based on a network slice identifier and a QoSidentifier pertaining to the packets. For example, access device 107 maycalculate a priority weight pertaining scheduling of the packets fortransmission. As previously described, access device 107 may calculatethe scheduling priority weight based on equation (1) or equation (2),for example.

In block 615, access device 107 may calculate a resource priority weightfor the packets based on a network slice identifier and a QoS identifierpertaining to the packets. For example, access device 107 may calculatea priority weight pertaining resources (e.g., network resources ofaccess device 107, air interface resources, and/or other communicationlink resources). As previously described, access device 107 maycalculate the resource priority weight based on equation (1) or equation(2), for example.

In block 620, access device 107 may select or assign resources for thepackets based on the resource priority weight. For example, accessdevice 107 may select a category of resources (e.g., common, dedicated,reserved, or another type of resources) to use to support the packets.As previously described, the resources may relate to air interfaceresources and/or network resources (e.g., physical, logical, virtual).According to another exemplary embodiment, access device 107 may selector assign resources based on additional information (e.g., schedulingpriority weight, URLCC feature set, etc.).

In block 625, access device 107 may calculate a URLLC feature set forthe packets based on the network slice identifier and the QoS identifierpertaining to the packets. For example, access device 107 may calculateURLLC parameters and values for the packets based on equation (3) orequation (4), for example.

In block 630, access device 107 may process and transmit the packetsbased on the priority weights or the priority weights and the URLCCfeature set. For example, access device 107 may process the packets(e.g., route selection, buffering, scheduling of transmission, and/orother pre-transmission operation(s)) and transmit the packets based onthe scheduling and resources correlated to the priority weights.According to such an example, the URLLC feature set may be inapplicableto the packets. According to another example, in which the URLLC featureset is application (e.g., packets relate to a URLCC service), accessdevice 107 may process and transmit the packets based on the priorityweights and the URLLC feature set, as described herein.

Although FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a process of theradio resource management and slice control service, according to otherexemplary scenarios, the radio resource management and slice controlservice may perform additional operations, fewer operations, and/ordifferent operations than those illustrated and described. For example,access device 107 may mark the packets with a DSCP value based on 5QI or5QI and ARP priority levels. In this way, different DRBs may provideflexibility and/or tunability at RLC and PDCP layers as a part of thetransport priority service, as described herein. The transport priorityservice may provide a transport priority for the packets in the uplinkor the downlink when access device 107 transmits the marked packets toanother device (e.g., RU, CU, etc.).

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram illustrating another exemplary process 700 ofan exemplary embodiment of the radio resource management and slicecontrol service. According to an exemplary embodiment, DU 210 or anothertype of access device 107 that includes DU functionality may perform astep of process 600. According to an exemplary implementation, processor510 executes software 520 to perform the step of process 700, asdescribed herein. Alternatively, the step may be performed by executionof only hardware.

In block 705, access device 107 may receive a request for an applicationservice. For example, access device 107 may receive the request from enddevice 130.

In block 710, access device 107 may determine whether a current networkconnection supports a network slice and the requested applicationservice. For example, access device 107 may analyze the request andidentify criterion/criteria of a network connection that supports therequested application service. The criterion/criteria may relate to aradio connection with end device 130, another leg of a networkconnection in access network 105 or between access network 105 and corenetwork 120. Access device 107 may compare the current networkconnection configuration to a network connection configuration thatsupports the network slice and associated SLA and/or QoS requirementsthat supports the requested application service. According to anexemplary embodiment, access device 107 may store information thatcorrelates network connection configurations with network slices andapplication services. Access device 107 may use this information to makethe determination. Additionally, access device 107 may store end devicecapability information pertaining to end device 130.

When access device 107 determines that the current network connectionsupports the network slice and the requested application service (block710-YES), access device 107 may transmit the request to an uplinknetwork device (block 715). Process 700 may end.

When access device 107 determines that the current network connectiondoes not support the network slice and the requested application service(block 710-NO), access device 107 may select network configurationinformation of a network connection that supports the network slice andthe requested application service (block 720).

In block 725, access device 107 may invoke a procedure that modifies thecurrent network connection with end device 130. For example, accessdevice 107 may generate and transmit a message to another access device107 and/or end device 130 to modify the current network connection tothe selected network connection. The message may include networkconfiguration information pertaining to a frequency band, a RAT, and/oranother configuration of the selected network connection that may bedifferent from the current network connection, as described herein.

Although FIG. 7 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a process of theradio resource management and slice control service, according to otherexemplary scenarios, the radio resource management and slice controlservice may perform additional operations, fewer operations, and/ordifferent operations than those illustrated and described.

As set forth in this description and illustrated by the drawings,reference is made to “an exemplary embodiment,” “exemplary embodiments,”“an embodiment,” “embodiments,” etc., which may include a particularfeature, structure or characteristic in connection with anembodiment(s). However, the use of the phrase or term “an embodiment,”“embodiments,” etc., in various places in the description does notnecessarily refer to all embodiments described, nor does it necessarilyrefer to the same embodiment, nor are separate or alternativeembodiments necessarily mutually exclusive of other embodiment(s). Thesame applies to the term “implementation,” “implementations,” etc.

The foregoing description of embodiments provides illustration but isnot intended to be exhaustive or to limit the embodiments to the preciseform disclosed. Accordingly, modifications to the embodiments describedherein may be possible. For example, various modifications and changesmay be made thereto, and additional embodiments may be implemented,without departing from the broader scope of the invention as set forthin the claims that follow. The description and drawings are accordinglyto be regarded as illustrative rather than restrictive.

The terms “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended to be interpreted to includeone or more items. Further, the phrase “based on” is intended to beinterpreted as “based, at least in part, on,” unless explicitly statedotherwise. The term “and/or” is intended to be interpreted to includeany and all combinations of one or more of the associated items. Theword “exemplary” is used herein to mean “serving as an example.” Anyembodiment or implementation described as “exemplary” is not necessarilyto be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments orimplementations.

In addition, while series of blocks have been described regarding theprocesses illustrated in FIGS. 6 and 7, the order of the blocks may bemodified according to other embodiments. Further, non-dependent blocksmay be performed in parallel. Additionally, other processes described inthis description may be modified and/or non-dependent operations may beperformed in parallel.

Embodiments described herein may be implemented in many different formsof software executed by hardware. For example, a process or a functionmay be implemented as “logic,” a “component,” or an “element.” Thelogic, the component, or the element, may include, for example, hardware(e.g., processor 510, etc.), or a combination of hardware and software(e.g., software 520).

Embodiments have been described without reference to the specificsoftware code because the software code can be designed to implement theembodiments based on the description herein and commercially availablesoftware design environments and/or languages. For example, varioustypes of programming languages including, for example, a compiledlanguage, an interpreted language, a declarative language, or aprocedural language may be implemented.

Use of ordinal terms such as “first,” “second,” “third,” etc., in theclaims to modify a claim element does not by itself connote anypriority, precedence, or order of one claim element over another, thetemporal order in which acts of a method are performed, the temporalorder in which instructions executed by a device are performed, etc.,but are used merely as labels to distinguish one claim element having acertain name from another element having a same name (but for use of theordinal term) to distinguish the claim elements.

Additionally, embodiments described herein may be implemented as anon-transitory computer-readable storage medium that stores data and/orinformation, such as instructions, program code, a data structure, aprogram module, an application, a script, or other known or conventionalform suitable for use in a computing environment. The program code,instructions, application, etc., is readable and executable by aprocessor (e.g., processor 510) of a device. A non-transitory storagemedium includes one or more of the storage mediums described in relationto memory/storage 515. The non-transitory computer-readable storagemedium may be implemented in a centralized, distributed, or logicaldivision that may include a single physical memory device or multiplephysical memory devices spread across one or multiple network devices.

To the extent the aforementioned embodiments collect, store or employpersonal information of individuals, it should be understood that suchinformation shall be collected, stored, and used in accordance with allapplicable laws concerning protection of personal information.Additionally, the collection, storage and use of such information can besubject to consent of the individual to such activity, for example,through well known “opt-in” or “opt-out” processes as can be appropriatefor the situation and type of information. Collection, storage and useof personal information can be in an appropriately secure mannerreflective of the type of information, for example, through variousencryption and anonymization techniques for particularly sensitiveinformation.

No element, act, or instruction set forth in this description should beconstrued as critical or essential to the embodiments described hereinunless explicitly indicated as such.

All structural and functional equivalents to the elements of the variousaspects set forth in this disclosure that are known or later come to beknown are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended tobe encompassed by the claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: receiving, by a networkdevice of a radio access network, packets associated with a networkslice, a quality of service (QoS) flow, and an application service;calculating, by the network device, a first priority weight and a secondpriority weight for the packets based on a network slice identifier anda QoS identifier of the QoS flow; processing, by the network device, thepackets based on the first priority weight and the second priorityweight, wherein the processing includes one or more pre-transmissionoperations pertaining to the packets; and transmitting, by the networkdevice to another device, the packets based on the first priority weightand the second priority weight.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein thefirst priority weight indicates a priority value pertaining to at leastone of a network resource of the network device or an air interfaceresource, and wherein the second priority weight indicates a priorityvalue pertaining to scheduling a transmission of the packets.
 3. Themethod of claim 1, further comprising: calculating, by the networkdevice, an ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC) feature setfor the packets based on the network slice identifier and the QoSidentifier of the QoS flow; and wherein the transmitting furthercomprises: transmitting, by the network device to another device, thepackets based on the first priority weight, the second priority weight,and the URLLC feature set.
 4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:receiving, by the network device before receiving the packets, a requestto establish an application service session of the application service;determining, by the network device, that a current network connectionbetween the radio access network and an end device does not support thenetwork slice and the QoS flow; selecting, by the network device, aconfiguration for a network connection between the radio access networkand the end device that does support the network slice and the QoS flow;and invoking, by the network device, a procedure that modifies thecurrent network connection to the configuration for the networkconnection.
 5. The method of claim 4, wherein the procedure includesinforming the end device to switch to a different frequency band toconnect to the radio access network.
 6. The method of claim 1, whereinthe QoS identifier includes a Fifth Generation QoS Identifier (5QI) or aQoS Class Identifier (QCI).
 7. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: marking, by the network device, the packets with adifferentiated service code point value that indicates a transportpriority based on the QoS identifier, and wherein the transmittingfurther comprises: transmitting, by the network device to the otherdevice, the marked packets based on the first priority weight and thesecond priority weight.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein the networkdevice includes a distributed unit (DU) device.
 9. A network devicecomprising: a processor configured to: receive packets associated with anetwork slice, a quality of service (QoS) flow, and an applicationservice, wherein the network device is of a radio access network;calculate a first priority weight and a second priority weight for thepackets based on a network slice identifier and a QoS identifier of theQoS flow; process the packets based on the first priority weight and thesecond priority weight, wherein the processing includes one or morepre-transmission operations pertaining to the packets; and transmit toanother device, the packets based on the first priority weight and thesecond priority weight.
 10. The network device of claim 9, wherein thefirst priority weight indicates a priority value pertaining to at leastone of a network resource of the network device or an air interfaceresource, and wherein the second priority weight indicates a priorityvalue pertaining to scheduling a transmission of the packets.
 11. Thenetwork device of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configuredto: calculate an ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC)feature set for the packets based on the network slice identifier andthe QoS identifier of the QoS flow; and wherein the processor is furtherconfigured to: transmit to another device, the packets based on thefirst priority weight, the second priority weight, and the URLLC featureset.
 12. The network device of claim 9, wherein the processor is furtherconfigured to: receive before receiving the packets, a request toestablish an application service session of the application service;determine that a current network connection between the radio accessnetwork and an end device does not support the network slice and the QoSflow; select a configuration for a network connection between the radioaccess network and the end device that does support the network sliceand the QoS flow; and invoke a procedure that modifies the currentnetwork connection to the configuration for the network connection. 13.The network device of claim 12, wherein the procedure includes informingthe end device to switch to a different frequency band to connect to theradio access network.
 14. The network device of claim 9, wherein the QoSidentifier includes a Fifth Generation QoS Identifier (5QI) or a QoSClass Identifier (QCI).
 15. The network device of claim 9, wherein theprocessor is further configured to: mark the packets with adifferentiated service code point value that indicates a transportpriority based on the QoS identifier, and transmit to the other device,the marked packets based on the first priority weight and the secondpriority weight.
 16. The network device of claim 9, wherein the networkdevice includes a distributed unit (DU) device.
 17. A non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium storing instructions executable by aprocessor of a network device of a radio access network, which whenexecuted cause the network device to: receive packets associated with anetwork slice, a quality of service (QoS) flow, and an applicationservice; calculate a first priority weight and a second priority weightfor the packets based on a network slice identifier and a QoS identifierof the QoS flow; process the packets based on the first priority weightand the second priority weight, wherein the processing includes one ormore pre-transmission operations pertaining to the packets; and transmitto another device, the packets based on the first priority weight andthe second priority weight.
 18. The non-transitory computer-readablestorage medium of claim 17, wherein the first priority weight indicatesa priority value pertaining to at least one of a network resource of thenetwork device or an air interface resource, and wherein the secondpriority weight indicates a priority value pertaining to scheduling atransmission of the packets.
 19. The non-transitory computer-readablestorage medium of claim 17, wherein the instructions comprise furtherinstructions, which when executed, cause the network device to: receivebefore receiving the packets, a request to establish an applicationservice session of the application service; determine that a currentnetwork connection between the radio access network and an end devicedoes not support the network slice and the QoS flow; select aconfiguration for a network connection between the radio access networkand the end device that does support the network slice and the QoS flow;and invoke a procedure that modifies the current network connection tothe configuration for the network connection.
 20. The non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the network deviceincludes a distributed unit (DU) device, and wherein the QoS identifierincludes a Fifth Generation QoS Identifier (5QI) or a QoS ClassIdentifier (QCI).